He’s Ba-ack! Former Mayor Steve Laffey Weighs in on the Budget

During an exclusive interview yesterday with The Herald, former Cranston Mayor Stephen Laffey, reportedly planning a run for Governor next year, said that the state’s budgetary problems, and the fact that they’ve become local budget problems, should surprise nobody who has been paying attention.

Governor Donald Carcieri announced on Monday that he was proposing a $125 million cut in aid to cities and towns. The cut would cost Cranston $6.6 million in state aid.

Laffey has been sounding the fiscal alarm in op-ed pieces and talk radio appearances for the last several years. He will not yet acknowledge whether or not he is running for Governor…

Laffey said that every legislator who voted for the budget, and Governor Donald Carcieri, a fellow Republican who signed it, should not be in office.

“Everyone involved should resign. Either they didn’t know it would come to this, or they did and I’m not sure which is worse,” said Laffey.

Sounding every bit like a candidate for Governor, Laffey said the state’s political landscape is in need of a serious makeover. At a press conference to announce the appointment of a new economic development director late last week, talk centered on the need for everyone to “work together” to find solutions. Laffey, however, who didn’t attend the event, suggested that the approach was misguided. Instead, he said the state needs reformers who are ready for a battle.

“The bottom line is we’re going to need somebody, or a group of people, to run for public office who will take the fight to the established political order, and by that I mean the public sector union leaders and the General Assembly,” said Laffey. “There needs to be a direct fight … and unless we do that, we’ll continue on the road to collapse.”…

Read More: The Cranston Herald